Pond Boss Forums FISH & FISHING Fly Fishing & Other Fish Species EURYHALINE POND UPDATE

If your pond never gets below 55 degrees or so, this stocking is possible. There are many species which are highly tolerant to wide salinity ranges. They just need higher salinities to spawn.

Thats the goal....Temp is my highest risk I think being as far north in FL as I am...

I think I have mentioned before I know of a very small pond in Jacksonville Beach that has a couple large snook and tarpon and lots of tilapia and a various cichlids that have survived our coldest winters recently by laying in the corner of that pond that has an areteasion well flowing in one corner.

I am hoping I can copy this ...

Also got two more 15-16 inch Southern Flounder to add today during lunch...I'll post a video..

The google says it is rare for adult male Southern Flounder to break 14 inches and typically stay off shore. Immature fish and adult females inhabit the river system and esutaries. I am thnking the 15-16 inchers I got are young females...Hoping they will get some size in the pond...

Now you have to get some barramundi in there.....

I have seen a place on-line about some folks in FL trying to raise them comercially in ponds...
They charge an arm and a leg if you want to come fish a pond for the day.

I've caught southern flounder up to 6 lbs. They feel like rocks when you hook then cause they stay stuck to the bottom until you yank then up. I keep getting more and more jealous (err, I mean envious) every time you add something to your pond or post pictures.

Keep up the good work!

Took a long lunch break from work to let the last two founder go.

Im sure I was the only tuck in the parking garage this morning with flounder in a cooler and a bubbler running. Who knows what people thought as they walked by on the way to work.

I tried putting my polerized sunglass lense of the camera lense to help with water glare....Didnt seem to help much...Can't really see what going on beyond the surface....

Says the video is private.

opps, try it now

Well, I for one am 100% stoked and amazed by this endeavor [stokmazed]. This needs to get into PB Magazine. Shoot Lusk an email - bet he'd be fired up and fascinated [firecinated].

Too funny TJ..
I am thinking of were even to start to put am article together. I will shoot him am email. I'm sure he would be able to give me things to highlight..
Now on to speckled sea trout... This one I'm not sure how they will do in a pond... But I'm gonna find out soon...

I just looked up the definition of euryhaline - got it.

I included a partial list from the site and wonder if you have considered any of these:

Atlantic Stingray
Bull Shark
Green chromide
Herring
Lamprey
Mummichog
Molly
Puffer fish
Barramundi
Madagascar meagre
Mangrove Jack

The mummichog seems an interesting minnow - Travis any experience with them in the coastal areas around you? Wonder if they'd do well in pond environment? Reportedly tolerant of low DO and pollution.

Stingrays could be cool, and young bull sharks, too. Now that would make for an interesting management plan...feeding your fish rats! That video I would need to see!

TJ, the Bull Shark and the Lamprey, I wouldn't even consider adding. Lamprey because I've seen the scars that they've left on salmon in the Great Lakes, Bull Shark because of the damage they can do. You think a pike or musky is bad? TJ, PM sent.

I would love to see what an electroshock survey of this pond looks like now and again in 5 years or so.

Separate pond for the bull sharks...maybe stock common carp as forage. What a show! Didn't even see the lamprey there...those would not be desirable.

IT would be cool to have a Bull Shark and get it on a feeding schedual...

I would want to fence the pond so dogs and kids did not attept to swim....

It would look like a beach in south africa with all the shark warning signs around it, Only thing that most people would think it a joke and just jump in with out a fence.

It could be a good way to dispose of road kill .....

Yes, mummichogs are very common in the brackish water areas. I catch them with a seine or minnow trap at my dad's place to flounder fish with. They're closely related to the banded killifish(bull minnow). So much so they will hybridize. I see no reason to pick them over banded killifish for pond stocking.

It seems mostly what I have been able to find is what is called loacally mud minnows.., Best I can ID they are Gulf Killie fish...Do great in the pond but reproduction in freshwater is weak... I have seen them slowly disapear....I added tons all through out the winter last year...

Ill try any forage fish as I am sure I will need them now that I have have more predators...

Look for golden topminnows, American flagfish and sheepshead minnows. All are common in your part of FL and have no issues with spawning in pure freshwater.

I have sourced sheeps head minnows and added them. I saw them doing spawning activies...I must not have stocked enough as they are all gone now. Ill keep adding them , maybe the gams are eating the fry or the koi are sucking the eggs out of the sand. I can get lots of the sheeps head minnows so Ill keep adding them.

Getting the grass carp out and most off the koi out to allow the eel grass to take off would be a big help in keeping forage fish numbers up.

Indeed, I have tried several things on the grass carp...Gonna try snagging with a big trebble hook next....Then it's time for a 22 I think... It does seems I have too many koi..I am torn as I started out making a koi pond and Kinda like them. I thought they would naturally thin out more than they have... I thought I would end up with a few very large Koi...They have thinned some though...Ill get the grass carp out first and relocate a few koi ( my pets ) ,,,

Cake and eat it too , I know...

Can you fish for GC with pellet/stubby steves?

Removed one so far using SS.... The issue I have is I catch so many other things I am spooking them fighting and realing in all the other things, Koi, Blue Gill, et...

Ill try again before I 22 them , I would like to relocate them to another pond on the property that is full of weeeds..

There goes my idea of bowfishing for them....

if I can not get them alive soon ill try to borrow a bow and do that, at least it will be fun....Ill even try to video it if it gets to that point soon...Problem is I do not have "pond Partner" so Im usually alone and cannot video such events....